First thing’s first, you must hollow out a small hole for the plant to go in. I used an exacto knife to carve out the tiny hole. I carved about a half inch into the cork.

Now if you want to paint your planters, it is time. I painted about half of them just to keep it interesting. Basically just on the more ‘boring’ corks.

Once the paint is dry (if you painted), go ahead and glue a magnet to the back of each one. After the glue is dry (and I learned the hard way: waiting for the glue to dry is important) add a pinch of soil and a drop of water to the hole you carved out, then go ahead and add the tiny plant!

SO CUTE! Mine are hanging out on my fridge for now, but I think it would be cute to have some on my dry erase board!

I haven’t done a featured artist piece in some time. That partially has to do with the fact that I haven’t had a ton of time to look into new artist lately… but then I came across April Deacon.

Deacon’s works captivate and inspire me. She uses (mainly) old photographs, specifically portraits, which she finds in various stores, and then ‘resurrects’ them with acrylic paints.

She tends to use bold colors and geometric patterns in most of her work. That’s probably a lot of the reason that I love her art. Geometric is huge in my life right now!

“I collect discarded memories, then reinvent them.” -April Deacon

I also love how she goes about gaining inspiration. Deacon comes up with stories for the photograph about the people in them. She uses these stories to create her art.

” to be forgotten

perhaps the greatest tragedy to befall a human life
all of the joy and love, all of the pain and suffering, all of the memories, all of the contributions, all of the work
erased
as if those experiences never occurred, never meant anything to anyone
how many are there?
the forgotten certainly outnumber the remembered
terrifying
the possibility of living an entire life only to be forgotten

comforted
only in the knowledge that energy inhabits all of us
and
energy
does
not
die”

TGIF! (for serious) This week has been DRAGGING. It probably has something to do with the fact that I’m GOING ON VACATION next week… it always seems that when you’re looking forward to something, it takes forever for the time to arrive!

Anyways, I recently invested in a new flask… It was just something I felt I needed to have. However, I also felt that I needed to make it my own in some way. Hence this post!

So I’ve had these awesome paint markers for a while now. I really do use them a bunch. When I got my flask and was pondering how to be creative with it, I ultimately decided to use them to create a design!

You Need:
-A Flask
-Paint Markers
-Clear Sealer

This is a pretty straight forward DIY. Use your markers to paint a design onto the flask. I decided to go with a geometric design that also incorporated the word “meow”… mostly because I’m crazy. Obviously draw what suites you!

After the design is done, allow it to dry completely. (about an hour or so) Once the paint is dry, apply a coat of clear sealer. I did one side of my flask, let it dry, then did the other side. The sealer will ensure that your design stays on and will protect it from scratches! Be sure to follow the instructions on what ever sealer you get.

And done! Easy as pie.

I love my new little flask… it’s probably coming with me on vacation.

Speaking of vacation… I’m leaving this Sunday morning to go west. I know that’s very general, but we’re going a lot of places! (Yellowstone, Denver, Mt. Rushmore, Ect.) I’m pretty excited about it, and I plan on taking a ton of photos that I can share with you all! Follow me on Instagram for current updates! Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful week!

So I completed a small project over the weekend that I want to share with you guys!

I’m pretty into houseplants. Mostly succulents and cacti. This weekend I went into ‘get stuff done mode.’ This resulted in me re-potting all my house plants and cleaning up my little cacti gardens. I’ve had this vine type plant on my windowsill pretty much ever since I moved, and I had been thinking it would make a good candidate for a hanging piece! I had picked up a small basket I enjoyed at a thrift shop a bit ago, and had been trying to decided exactly what I wanted to do with it. It worked out perfectly for this project!

First thing I did was spray paint the basket white. I really wanted to keep the fresh, clean look of my apartment going on.

After the paint was dry, I grabbed some of my favorite mint colored yarn, and crocheted ‘straps’ directly to the basket. If you were trying to recreate this look, but don’t know how to crochet, you could easily braid some yarn and achieve something similar.

I crocheted a consistent loop over a doorway to my living room so that there wouldn’t be a knot on the top.

After that all I had to do was add the plant! I kept it in a plastic pot I also painted white, so that no dirt or water would leak through the basket.

I haven’t done a DIY in a while… it’s also gotten rather warm here in Cincinnati. Both of these things inspired me to come up with this little project just for you all!

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty into this whole cat clothing trend… I’m not ashamed to admit I own about sixish cat related clothing items. I don’t really plan on preventing it from expanding either. That’s just me though. Maybe you’re not crazy like me.

Anyways, I started out with a simple white t-shirt (like one of the ones that come in a three pack at Walmart) and some fun fabric. Of course you don’t have to make a cat shirt. It can be anything really. I made something similar using a heart shape last summer!

One:
First thing you need to do is cut a new neckline. I wanted my shirt to be kind of off the shoulder, so I cut it wide. I also wanted shorter sleeves, so I cut those as well.

Two:
Pin down a hem for the neckline (and the sleeves if you’re cutting them!) Make sure you do this with the shirt inside out.Three:
Now use your sewing machine to stitch down the hem!

Four:
Draw the cat (or other shape) on the back of your patterned fabric, and then cut it out.

Five:
Pin the cat to your shirt! Make sure you only pin it to the front layer of fabric.

Six:
Now it’s time to stitch on the cat. I used a zig-zag stitch and went around the entire shape twice. This will make sure your cat is definitely secure, and keep the fabric from unraveling too much.

DONE!:
Gaze at your work in awe!

I love this shirt a lot, and not just because it’s cat related. I love the breezy and laid back fit it has to it as well! If any of you make this DIY I’d love to see the results!

I’ve had major spring fever lately… looking out my window puts a damper on my day when I see all the snow and ice still out there… will it ever end???
So I’ve had this dress in my ‘to work on’ pile for months now. I knew it would be a simple fix, but it was winter… not much use for dresses like this in the winter… Anyways, I finally decided that I needed something to make me forget about the cold and snow for a minute, so I grabbed this dress out of the pile…

I really enjoyed the fabric pattern, the lace back, and the cute little buttons down the front of this dress… but what I didn’t enjoy was the layered ‘frilly’ look and the length. I’ve never been much of a maxi dress girl.

To make this dress acceptable to me, I simply cut off the bottom ‘frilly layer’ and hemmed it up. I know I’m lazy. I probably could have done a lot more with this, but I found it to be satisfactory, and actually pretty cute!

After:

Agree???

So that’s my ‘spring please get here now!’ plea to the universe. I have a new dress to wear once it’s warm!

On another note, I finally got my blog all hooked up with a Bloglovin account! So if you enjoy having all of your favorite blogs to read in one place, sign up and follow me! And if you already have Bloglovin… well you’re welcome. Life is easier this way!

I know I’ve been MIA lately… I have no excuse besides the fact that I’ve been being lazy…. it happens right? So anyways, I have a new upcycle today!

I finished this shirt a bit ago… longer ago than I care to admit…
Just take a look at the before picture I took when I bought the shirt in it’s original form…
It was still warm enough out for me to wear a chiffon shirt with just a cami… I’m such a slacker.

Anywho, as you can see, this shirt was wayyyy too big on me, but i really liked the fabric. I’ve also recently decided my closet is seriously lacking anything black.

Easy fix. I chopped off the sleeves and took in the sides. Pretty standard for me (as you are most likely aware if you’ve seen any of my past upcycles). I felt that it needed a little something extra though. Lately I’ve been rather fond of gold. This fondness resulted in my decision to paint the buttons of this top gold. Perfect.

I came across this cute little bench at a flea market over the summer for only $8! For months it sat in my parent’s garage as I waited to find the time to make it into what I had envisioned.

Finally I found some time, so I proceeded to paint the bench a nice off-white. I planed on putting the bench in my kitchen, and I wanted it to be neat and fresh. After the paint was applied and the bench was transported to my kitchen, it was buried under odds and ends and mail as I waited to find the time to sew up some appropriate cushions. I had the perfect fabric already…
Lovely vintage fabric! I love the color and the print!
So a month or two after being moved to my kitchen, I have finally completed it all!

I really love the result! No more acting as a storage table; the bench now serves as a quiet little sitting area by my window. It’s a rather nice place for coffee and a bagel in the morning!

I found the bruge lace stitch at crochetme.com and was intrigued! I really liked the curvey zig zag look that it created, so I decided to attempt to create a scarf with the stitch!
I’m pretty pleased with the results!

So, I’ve been slacking a lot with this lately… I know I’ve missed a month or so of my Interior Design Magazine series… I know… I need to step it up a notch! Well, here goes.

As usual I’ll start with my favorite projects featured in the magazine!OneAesop is a high end skin care line started by hair stylist Dennis Paphitis in 1987. Paphitis then hired Giovanni Lepori as a general manager. Each Aesop store is unique. Lepori likes to choose architects early in their career to design new stores. All the stores focus on using raw materials and center around a sink with running water so that customers can wash their hands and try out the products!

Two
This next one is the loft space of Eric and Julie Ronning by Ghislaine Vinas Interior Design. The whole place is animal themed starting with the swallow wallpaper featured in the entry hall.
I absolutely love the wood look of the trompe l’oeil wallpaper for the back splash in the kitchen!

Three
This last of my favorites is… well my overall favorite! This is the Midtown headquarters of the advertising firm McCann Erikson. The new headquarters were a design collaboration between Gensler, a top 100 design firm, and Tom Dixon, a company focused on lighting and furniture. (I’ve mentioned my love for Tom Dixon Lighting before in a previous design post!)

I really love the stools sound the bar area, and I LOVE all the Tom Dixon lighting installations, as well as the chevron rug!

Like seriously… the lighting… I can’t get over it. The copper lighting cluster above the lounge area blows my mind! It’s amazing how much lighting can make or break a space.

So now onto products I love!

1. Pelle Soap Stones:
“The Soap Stones are handcrafted glycerine soap intended for both use and display. Consisting of all natural, vegetable-based soap ingredients, the Soap Stones are made and hand cut in our Brooklyn studio.”2. CX Design:
“CX Design is the creation of Italian-born designer Monica Missio and British-born entrepreneur Richard Cleves. Established in 1990, it offers the only complete lighting collection individually hand-crafted by master Italian glass blowers on Murano, an island just north of Venice – the centuries old, undisputed center of the world’s most treasured glass. ” I love how the pendants and chandeliers can come on chains!3. Erica Rosenfeld Capsule Light:
Handblown glass table and floor lamps that resemble pill capsules. I like the variety of colors and sizes these come in!

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Welcome!

Hi!
My friends call me the whale.
My real name is Sondra.
I like to be creative. Scratch that. Being creative is my life.
I'm an interior designer. I love to thrift.
I sew, crochet, cook, craft, paint... I do a lot of things.
This blog is a documentation of some of my endeavors.
I hope it inspires you to do something creative as well!
-The Whale